The inventive concept relates generally to memory devices. More particularly, the inventive concept relates to memory devices and memory systems that manage bad pages.
Memory devices are widely used in electronic systems. For example, they play a significant role in most computers, mobile devices, industrial machinery, and communication equipment, to name but a few.
Many electronic systems require high-density memory devices. Accordingly, researchers are continually seeking ways to produce memory devices with higher density. Due to limits of semiconductor micro-manufacturing processes, there is a general tradeoff between increased memory density and reliability. In other words, as memory density increases, reliability tends to decrease accordingly. This reduction in reliability often leads to bad cells, which can reduce semiconductor yield.
In an effort preserve semiconductor yield in the presence of bad cells, researchers have developed various techniques for managing bad cells. Many of these techniques have focused on using redundant memory cells to replace bad cells.